American Encore Joins Coalition Demanding Congress Lift Oil Export Ban
American Encore Joins Coalition Demanding Congress Lift Oil Export Ban
September 23, 2015
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By: Patrick Hedger-Policy Director, American Encore
American Encore has joined a coalition composed of 20 prominent conservative and free market advocacy groups to demand Congress lift the Oil Export Ban. The ban is a pointless policy put into place by politicians grossly misguided on energy policy and economics during the 1970s. Since then, the export ban has deterred exploration and production of America's vast natural resource wealth and thus has kept upward pressure on fuel prices for American families and businesses. It's time for this needless self-inflicted harm to end, especially considering current events in American foreign affairs.
Read more about the economics surrounding oil exports and why the ban is a bad thing here.
Just recently, the Obama administration came to a deal with the Iranian government regarding nuclear proliferation. Part of this deal will allow Iranian produced oil to re-enter the full global market. Regardless of the merits of the nuclear deal itself, it seems to be inexcusable that the American government would actively support the ability of an admitted adversary of the United States to re-enter the global oil trade, but not the hard-working people of places like the Gulf Coast, Texas, North Dakota, California, and other American oil producing regions. This hypocrisy must end.
Please read our joint letter to Congress below:
September 17, 2015
Dear Senators and Representatives,
On behalf of our groups and organizations, together representing millions of Americans, we urge you to end the Crude Oil Export Ban. Repealing this antiquated government mandate will spur economic growth, create hundreds of thousands of jobs, and allow Americans to benefit from affordable and reliable energy.
As a result of an energy crisis in the 1970’s, the United States has kept a ban in place on crude oil exports. This ban has restricted the expansion of the U.S. energy economy, which is thriving and delivering lower-cost energy to consumers. Policymakers should look to unleash the potential of the energy economy instead of limiting it.
Multiple independent studies show that the ban harms U.S. economic growth and job creation. The National Economic Research Associates (NERA), for example, found that eliminating the export ban would inject between $600 billion and $1.8 trillion into the domestic economy and reduce national unemployment by an average of 200,000 jobs over 2015-2020.
States would benefit from the creation of thousands of new jobs in manufacturing, including steel and cement. According to a study conducted by IHS Global Inc., higher U.S. oil production resulting from a lifting of the ban would create at its peak 1 million jobs, grow GDP by $135 billion, and increase average household income by $391. A quarter of the employment growth would occur in non-oil producing states, thanks to the petroleum sector’s extensive supply chain.
Critics argue that lifting the ban would increase gasoline prices. However, a recent report by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) found that repealing the ban wouldn’t increase gasoline prices and could even lower them. This in turn would provide relief to consumers at the pump.
We encourage members of both chambers of Congress to support legislation that fully lifts the ban on crude oil exports. We would also urge you to oppose efforts to use the legislation as a vehicle to extend handouts for green energy such as the wind production tax credit or the solar investment tax credit.
Sincerely,
Sean Noble, President
American Encore
